Armed with little more than a modem and access to the Internet,
today's homebased entrepreneur can become an instant contender
in the international marketplace. But it takes more than a modem
and a Web site to become an instant success in that
marketplace.

Pitching your products to the international community involves
the same marketing issues you're concerned with domestically:
What concepts, images or slogans will attract customers? What
strategies will work best in this market? Unless you're at once
a linguist, an anthropologist and a diplomat, you may find these
questions difficult to answer. Successful international marketing
demands an understanding of language as well as cultural issues,
sensitivities and symbolism. Something as simple as the colors of
your Web site can mean the difference between a sale and a cultural
faux pas.

One solution: "Localize" your Web site and any other
materials you intend to distribute to the international marketplace
(including brochures, sales literature and product documentation).
Localization means more than acquiring a word-for-word translation
of your materials; it means developing a marketing approach that is
both internationally effective and culturally correct.

Moira Allen is an author and former technical writer who
lives in Olympia, Washington.

Start At The Beginning

Though localization agents are often listed in the Yellow Pages
under "Translation Services," the key difference between
localizers and translators is the point at which they begin.
Typically, traditional translation can take place only after
you've developed such materials as product documentation, sales
brochures or a Web site. The problem with this approach is that it
can only "make over" materials that were designed
primarily for U.S. or other English-speaking markets.

What is appropriate for U.S. customers, however, may be
ineffective or even offensive in other countries. Many American
phrases, concepts and images make no sense at all abroad. For
example, Sol Squire, president and CEO of Twin Dragons Software
Inc. in Gloucester, Massachusetts, cites KFC's disastrous
attempt to translate "finger-lickin' good" into
Chinese: "It's good enough that you'll eat your
fingers off." At best, a word-for-word translation can sound
stiff and unnatural; at worst, it can create costly blunders.

The solution is to address cultural issues before you engineer
an international marketing strategy. Cultural awareness, say most
localizers, should be addressed early in the planning process. In
addition, it should be addressed by someone who understands not
only your target market but the product or service you're
trying to sell. "We require any translator to have a minimum
of 10 years' experience with the subject matter," says
Gerry Carson, senior vice president of Pan-American Access Inc., a
full-service translation and localization company in Atlanta.

Squire agrees: "You wouldn't hire someone off the
street to write marketing materials just because the person spoke
English. So why hire someone to develop or translate your technical
and sales documents just because of [his or her] language
ability?"

The Right Stuff

An effective localizer, says Squire, should ask marketing
questions at every stage of the process: "What are the `hot
buttons' of your target market? Who is your competition? How
does your product differ from the competition's?"
Different countries have different expectations, and many
localizers offer specialized testing to determine whether the
product meets those expectations.

Localizing your approach from the beginning also enhances
consistency. "Every industry has its own terminology,"
Carson points out. "That terminology needs to be consistent in
all your materials." Carson's firm employs an "active
terminology recognition" database that stores a lexicon of
phrases and terms used in documents, so that every piece of
literature will be translated consistently.

Avoiding Pitfalls

The perils of poor translation are obvious, even ludicrous. Who
can forget Chevrolet's failure to realize that, in Spanish,
"no va" means "does not go"? Other issues,
however, are more subtle.

George Hallak, president of AramediA Group, an Arabic software
firm in Boston, points out that there are at least 22 Arabic
nations and dialects; an experienced localizer should know that the
accepted business standard for the region is "Modern Standard
Arabic." To further confuse matters, some languages also have
formal and informal versions. Make sure the localizer you choose
understands cultural idioms and regional variations of the
language.

Your problems compound when you seek to tap markets that use
non-English, Roman alphabetic languages (e.g., western European);
non-Roman alphabetic languages (e.g., Arabic, Greek or Russian); or
nonalphabetic languages (e.g., Asian). To use any non-English
language on your Web site, you must ensure your browser supports
language fonts containing accents, diacritical marks and special
characters. Putting an Arabic or Hebrew translation on your Web
site is even more complicated because these languages are read from
right to left.

The complications involved in using Asian languages on your Web
site exceed the capabilities of most homebased offices. The fonts
needed for these languages contain more than 7,000 characters. A
standard PC doesn't have the screen resolution to display such
fonts, and most standard servers can't handle the system
requirements of such languages; a double-byte operating system is
needed.

One solution to this problem, according to Carson, is to
incorporate your translated material as an image rather than as
text. Too many complex graphics, however, can increase the download
time required to access your site. If you want to post a lot of
material, another alternative is to have your Web site hosted by
the localization agency's server or by an ISP.

Nor is language the only issue you must address. If you're
setting up a Web site, you'll also need to make culturally
sensitive decisions regarding graphics, icons, interfaces and even
the colors you use. Squire relates the tale of Euro-Disney, whose
designer loved purple and used it lavishly throughout the theme
park. Unfortunately, to the French, purple suggests funerals and
funeral parlors. Similarly, while red is considered stimulating in
the United States, it is regarded as restful in China. White
symbolizes death in most Asian countries, while "yellow should
be avoided pretty much altogether," Squire says, as it often
has negative connotations.

Combining colors in a graphic can also be a problem, says
Carson--if those colors represent the hues of a rival country's
flag. While such concerns might seem trivial to a U.S. audience,
it's important to remember many countries are embroiled in
intense rivalries. "If you're marketing a product to
Chile," Carson cautions, "you don't want your Web
site colors to represent the flag of Brazil."

What Price Correctness?

Besides looking in the Yellow Pages, you can search on the
Internet for localization agents under "localization" or
"translation." Be sure to inquire about the agency's
knowledge of your target country's culture, its familiarity
with regional dialects or language variations, its understanding of
your business, and its expertise in developing international
marketing strategies.

Costs vary widely from agency to agency and depend on the
project. Translation is generally billed at a rate of 18 cents to
25 cents per word, says Carson, and is based either on the original
word count or the translation word count. More extensive
services--such as Web site consultation or development--are
generally billed by the hour.

The cost of localization may seem high, but you must ask whether
that cost is balanced by the potential for sales in an
international market. "Ignoring cultural details will keep
U.S. products from competing in the international
marketplace," says Squire. Overseas customers won't
tolerate badly translated materials or repackaged English-language
products. The key to an effective marketing strategy is the same in
any language: Know your market.

A Site Of Many Colors

As you develop a multilingual Web site, remember that not all
countries use the same equipment or standards. In many countries,
time is billed by the minute, which means a site that is slow to
download or difficult to navigate will cost your clients money. To
avoid problems--and to increase your site's international
accessibility--try the following:

*Keep images to a minimum. They increase download time--and
images that are effective in the U.S. marketplace may be
misunderstood or considered offensive in other countries. Also,
offer a link to a text-only version of your site.

*Make sure your site can be navigated easily. "Don't
try to dazzle the user with your cleverness," warns Gerry
Carson, senior vice president of Pan-American Access Inc., a
full-service translation and localization company in Atlanta.
Provide clear instructions, and don't bury those instructions
within images; provide text guidelines as well.

*Use international formats for dates, times and currencies. In
most European countries, for example, "3:30 p.m." would
be written as 15:30, while "July 4, 1776," would be
written as 4.7.76.

*Develop an e-mail response form that includes automated options
(such as radio buttons, where users can click on their choices from
a list of options), thus minimizing the amount of translation
required.

*Instead of displaying all your material on your Web site, make
it easy for customers to request information via e---mail.